Arranged Marriage ✓

Chapter - Thirty.

Nishita.

Papa finally said those words. He said what the caller told him. And Jiju hung his head low. Dii went to Jiju and shook him by the arm. “It’s not true!”, she said, slowly. “Kartik, please tell me it’s a lie. Everyone is—!”, she put her hand on her mouth. “He’s gone, Nishtha”, Jiju softly said those bitter words.

“No!”, Ma and Bhabi cried. “This can’t be true!”, Ma’s cries grew louder. “He– He promised me he would come. He can’t leave me!”, Bhabi screamed, “He can’t”. Mom and Dii were trying to handle Ma and Bhabi. They wouldn’t stop crying. Dad and Jiju looked after Papa. I was stranded alone.

Darshan had excused himself about ten minutes ago to attend a phone call and he returned hearing everyone’s cries. He asked Jiju what was going on and Jiju started speaking.

“It’s Nishant. Being a Major, he was staying at an Army Camp in Ladhak. He was missing for the past few days, which we were aware of. But didn’t let anyone know. The Army Officers were searching for him and–” Jiju stopped. “And?”, I asked, everyone’s eyes now at me.

“And they found his body. He was shot dead”, the words left Jiju’s mouth. And Bhabi — my brother’s widow — screamed. Ma broke down. And Darshan’s eyes gazed at me. “NO!”, I barked. “NO HE CANNOT! HE CAN’T LEAVE US! HE CAN’T! I—”, I stumbled on the floor. Darshan ran towards me.

“Nishi– Nishi”, I heard my name from him, “get a hold on yourself. You can’t break down. You need to be strong. For everyone”. “Darshan”, I said, before my eyes became heavy and my vision became blurry. I passed out.

I stood alone in a dark room. “Is anyone there?”, I called out. But no one replied. “Hello?”, I said, taking a step forward and stopped as I bumped into a familiar face. “Bhaiya”, the words escaped my mouth. He smiled at me. A tear streamed down my cheek. “They are saying you are– it’s not true, right? You will come back won’t you? You said, you will. Now you can’t back off your promise, say something!”, I demanded. Still no answer.

“Nishu”, he said, “I might be dead, but I’m watching you. I’m with you, always. Isn’t it better now?”. “No, it’s not please come back. Please, I need you, Bhabi needs you! Everyone needs you and wants you back. And your little daughter? Bhaiya, think about her”, I said. “I can’t”, he simply said and started walking. “Wait”, I said. He didn’t stop. He kept on walking. I kept calling his name out. At one point, he disappeared.

“Bhai!”, I screamed, as my eyes opened wide. “Nishi”, Darshan said, “you’re up”, his hand reached to cup my cheek and I held it. “Darshan, bhai, everyone was saying he was dead– he is not. I saw him”, I said. “Nishi”, Darshan feebly said, “it’s true. He’s no more with us”. I banged my head on Darshan’s chest. He rubbed my back.

“I know the pain of losing someone, Nishita”, he said. I payed no attention to his words and I just cried. I wanted to cry out loud. And he understood it. He wrapped his arms around me put his chin over my head. “Why, Darshan? What did I do to deserve this? What did my family do that this happened to them?”, I asked.

“God is testing you. Maybe He has something better stored in for you and your family.”, he said. “What if He doesn’t? What if he has something worse than this for us? What will I do then, I’ll die”, I said. “Listen to me,” he said, “I’m here, alright? I’ll be with you for how long you want me to, I promise. And I will not break my promise”, he said. Sweet of him.

“And moreover, Nishant hasn’t left you. He is with you. He is watching you cry over him”, he said. “You know when he was in a war, he told me that nothing is safe. And we must not expect for him to come alive from the war. He always said that before going to any camp and after returning from there. But this time, he promised he was coming back. And he broke it”, I said.

“He broke it, Darshan. And now he’s dead. I have to accept the fact; the reality. I know. But I can’t. I just cannot”, I said and he remained silent. “You know what was his last words to me”, I told him. “Hm?”, he asked. “If I die, please don’t cry. Get a grip on yourself and handle everyone. And tell them, I didn’t die in vain. I’ll be remembered as a Martyr. Who died protecting his wife, kid, family and country”, I said as tears found their way down on Darshan’s shirt.

“Nishi”, he started, “I haven’t met him many times but whenever I met him, I saw the fierceness, bravery and the fire in his eyes. He was, in fact, the bravest man I ever knew. He was a warrior. Not a survivor. And yes, he didn’t die in vain. His heart beat for you and your family. He is alive, in your heart. Close your eyes, put your hand on your heart and feel him. Trust me, you’ll see him”.

I did as he said and somewhere, it felt like for some moments, it was Bhai’s hand on my head. It felt like he was smiling at me. It felt like, he was right here close to me, with me. I finally opened my eyes up and moved away from Darshan’s chest. “Where is everyone else?”, I asked, realising that I was in my room and not at Darshan’s.

“Everyone in your family has slept. Nishtha and Kartik went back their home and so did my parents. And I and you– well we’re in each other’s arms”, he said. He wasn’t joking. But, my brain pushed me to smile feebly. Which I didn’t regret doing.

“Thank you”, I told him, sandwiching his hands in my palms. “Always”, he replied. Always. “I think we should sleep, tomorrow it’s going to be a long day”, he advised. I shook my head.

We lye down next to each other. Our eyes wide open. “Nishita”, he whispered and I looked at him, with my moist eyes, “do you mind, if I sleep hugging you?”. What he said, was the thing that I needed the most. A hug. I nodded and he hugged me. He felt like home. And I loved the feeling… love… what a pathetic feeling.

“Close your eyes, Nishi”, he huskily said. I closed my eyes and he neared his mouth to my face. His nose touched my cheeks and his parted lips too. Unable to ignore the closeness and the fact that I liked it, I decided to sleep. For I had to face a lot, the next day.

Aaaaaand, yes. What you guessed was correct. It was Nishi’s brother Nishant. And he died :’). If you liked the chapter please vote and comment down. Love you ♥

“The ones that love us, never really leave us. And you can always find ’em, in here [pointing at Harry’s heart].” — Sirius Black, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.